If the engine was really bad you will have to replace the oil cooler. We had one so bad it we had to replace everything except the dry sump. Even the intake looked like they poured molten lava thru it. Take your time and clean the system properly, It takes us at least 2 hrs to flush and properly clean the oil system to make sure there is not anything left from a previous failure.

Unreal you have officially made it sound way to easy LOL.. I'll start disassembly this week and keep you guys posted on where to head from here. I'm just happy to have the support from you guys. Any suggestions on built but reliable long blocks in the 600-650hp range?

If I could pull out the engine from the top along with the rest of the drivetrain on jackstands in my garage at age 69, doing it with a 2-post lift at a younger age must really be easy.

Katech and Texas Speed are the first two that come to mind for built motors.

OP seems pretty knowledgeable about working on stuff. Curious as to how the oil pan got windowed. Sounds like a rod let go. Let him take it apart and find out what the real destruction was caused by before a million assumptions get made. "Ticking" can be caused by several things...not just valve train. Ever heard a spun bearing? Just sayin...

Thx for all the input here guys... gave it a good start pulling the motor everything is just about ready to be taken out from under the car. Have to get two more sets of jack stands just to be sure everything is secure then i will unbolt the cradle, make sure everything is disconnected and raise the body up on this puppy... I just cant take the suspense anymore of not knowing what exploded... Then i can begin to weep in the corner before building the motor i really want LOL

My car now has a noticeable ticking that's not the injectors that my GM tech friend confirmed. Maybe it's time to trade her.

yea if your not going to check anything then yea sell it. injectors are quiet. but then again, if you maybe checked it months ago and found out your heads are fine then you've been worrying all this time for nothing. just a thought.

Remember to take the console off and disconnect the shift ****/boot so it will drop out. You will have to disconnect some brake lines to drop the cradle. Rear driver side and I forget the other but one up front. I left the abs module hanging in the car, same with a/c compressor since I didn't want to recharge it.

It's been so long since it happened to me that I the sting had started to soften. I was really considering getting a C7, but threads like this rekindle that fire I have against GM. The fact that they left me and so many others out in the cold, will ensure that I won't buy another.

It's been so long since it happened to me that I the sting had started to soften. I was really considering getting a C7, but threads like this rekindle that fire I have against GM. The fact that they left me and so many others out in the cold, will ensure that I won't buy another.